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Pod Save the World

Each week, “Pod Save America” cohost Tommy Vietor and Obama’s former Deputy National Security Advisor Ben Rhodes break down the biggest developments in foreign policy, national security and global politics. They try to explain which stories matter and why, and what we can all do to understand and shape the world around us.

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Tommy and Ben break down the expanding web of corruption around President Trump — from a bombshell report revealing the UAE royal family’s stake in the Trump family crypto venture, to the global fallout from the release of the Epstein Files. They also dig into Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard’s role in “investigating” insane foreign election conspiracies, a mysterious, top-secret whistleblower complaint that Gabbard has kept from Congress, the impact of brutal winter conditions on the war in Ukraine, Egypt’s role in Sudan’s civil war, why Americans should care about a separatist movement in Alberta, Canada, and the last place you’d ever expect to find a World War I artillery shell. Then, Ben speaks with Ali Vaez of the International Crisis Group about what’s unfolding in Iran after the regime’s brutal crackdown. 

For a closed-captioned version of this episode, click here. For a transcript of this episode, please email transcripts@crooked.com and include the name of the podcast. 

Preorder Ben’s book All We Say: The Battle for American Identity: A History in 15 Speeches and subscribe to his Substack here.

505: Epstein Files Reveal Depraved Global Network

Tommy and Ben explain why Trump backed off his threat to take Greenland by force and debate whether European leaders have finally found a playbook for how to push back, the backlash to Trump’s disgraceful denigration of NATO troops and their service in Afghanistan, and Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney’s bold attempt to break from the United States and forge a new international order. Then they cover the purge of top military leaders in China and widespread rumors of a coup attempt against Chinese President Xi Jinping, Jared Kushner’s much-derided PowerPoint presentation on the future of Gaza, new details about how the Iranian regime crushed the recent protests and why there may now be an even greater likelihood that the US bombs Iran (again), a humiliating and terrifying profile of Kash Patel’s first year at the FBI, and why a real estate forum in Saudi Arabia made us want to cry. Then Tommy speaks with Kenneth Rosen, author of Polar War: Submarines, Spies, and the Struggle for Power in a Melting Arctic, about why the Arctic is becoming a geopolitical flashpoint. Subscribe to Ben’s Substack here.

504: Has the World Finally Decided To Stand up to Trump?

Tommy and Ben talk about the growing and very real threat of President Trump attempting to take Greenland by force, the spectrum of reactions from world leaders from feckless NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte to scorning French President Emmanuel Macron, and how this would lead to the end of NATO if Europeans don’t stand up to the US. They also discuss how Trump’s walking back of military threats to Iran led to the death of thousands of protesters, the confusing and corrupt intentions behind the “Board of Peace”, a rocky ceasefire between the Syrian government and Kurdish forces, Grok’s sexualized image crisis, and a bizarre tribute to Stephen Hawking. Then, Ben speaks to Sky News Africa Correspondent, Yousra Elbagir, about Uganda’s contested election. Preorder Ben’s new book, All We Say: The Battle for American Identity: A History in 15 Speeches, out on May 26.

For a closed-captioned version of this episode, click here. For a transcript of this episode, please email transcripts@crooked.com and include the name of the podcast.

503: Greenland Prepares for Trump Invasion

Tommy and Ben talk about the historic protests in Iran and reports of the regime’s brutal crackdown with potentially tens of thousands dead, President Trump’s threats of military intervention (and why they’re a bad idea), and Iranian exiles vying for power as regime replacements from the safety of Washington, DC. They also talk about the next steps in Venezuela, including opposition leader María Corina Machado’s tricky positioning, why ramping up Venezuelan oil production might be extremely difficult, expensive and take years, and how oil factors into Russia’s reaction. Then they talk about Trump’s ongoing threats of military intervention in Mexico, the chances of political and economic collapse in Cuba, and the G7 being shifted to accommodate Trump’s UFC themed birthday bash. At the end of the show, Tommy speaks to Jason Rezaian, Director of Press Freedom Initiatives at the Washington Post, former political prisoner in Iran, and host of the podcast 544 Days about the anniversary of his imprisonment and what would come next if Iran’s regime fell.

For a closed-captioned version of this episode, click here. For a transcript of this episode, please email transcripts@crooked.com and include the name of the podcast.

502: Iranian Regime Massacres Protesters, Will Trump Respond?

Tommy and Ben discuss: the fallout from the Trump administration’s strikes on Venezuela and kidnapping of President Nicolás Maduro, why President Trump chose Maduro’s VP Delcy Rodríguez to run the country instead of opposition leader María Corina Machado, how the DOJ’s new indictment of Maduro shows that the administration has been lying about him being the head of a drug cartel, and the comparisons between the Venezuela operation and the 1989 invasion of Panama to arrest Manuel Noriega. Then they dig into the (unfortunately named) “Donroe Doctrine” and what Trump’s embrace of regime change means for the world, including how seriously we should take his threats against Mexico, Colombia, Cuba, and Greenland. Finally, they explain why Iranians have been protesting in huge numbers for over a week, how serious of a threat the protests pose to the regime, and debate whether we should take seriously Trump’s threat to respond militarily if the regime kills protesters. Then Ben speaks to Representative Joaquin Castro (D-TX) about President Trump’s lack of transparency to Congress about the attack on Venezuela, how much it’s costing American taxpayers, and how Democrats are trying to stop him from future invasions.

For a closed-captioned version of this episode, click here. For a transcript of this episode, please email transcripts@crooked.com and include the name of the podcast.

501: Where Will Trump Invade Next?

Tommy and Ben respond to the breaking news that the Trump administration launched strikes on Venezuela and arrested Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro in a special forces raid. They talk about President Trump’s claims that the US will now “run” the country, the illegality of this regime change operation, the plan to let American oil companies cash in, and the many other global implications of this shocking move.

For a closed-captioned version of this episode, click here. For a transcript of this episode, please email transcripts@crooked.com and include the name of the podcast.

Breaking: Trump Invades Venezuela

Tommy and Ben discuss the horrific Bondi Beach terror attack, the rise of antisemitism in Australia, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s bad-faith attempt to connect Australia’s recognition of a Palestinian state to this violence, and the perpetrators potentially training in the Philippines. They also talk about the US seizure of a Venezuelan oil tanker and how it fits into President Trump’s creep towards regime change, Chile’s election of the most right-wing President since Pinochet and Trump gleefully taking credit, questions about why US troops are still in Syria after the death of two US soldiers, pro-democracy advocate Jimmy Lai’s conviction in Hong Kong, a proposed policy to check the social media accounts of visitors to the US, the death of Jared Kushner’s corrupt hotel deal in Serbia, and highlights from episode 2 of The Liz Truss Show. Then, Ben speaks to Zanny Minton Beddoes, Editor-in-Chief of The Economist, about global shifts to watch for in 2026.

For a closed-captioned version of this episode, click here. For a transcript of this episode, please email transcripts@crooked.com and include the name of the podcast.

500: ISIS Terror in Australia

Tommy and Ben explain how President Trump forfeited our advantage in the artificial intelligence race by allowing Nvidia to sell advanced AI chips to China, break down the new White House National Security Strategy document and debate whether it matters, and explain how fighting between Thailand and Cambodia and between the DRC and Rwanda has exposed Trump's “peacemaker” image as a sham. They also talk about the lack of progress on a peace deal between Russia and Ukraine, the bizarre story of a fake coup in Guinea Bissau, an attempted coup in Benin, troubling reports from Yemen’s civil war, and former British Prime Minister Liz Truss’s hilariously bad podcast debut. Then Tommy speaks to Anika Wells, Australia’s Minister for Communications and Sport, about the country’s social media ban for kids under 16.

For a closed-captioned version of this episode, click here. For a transcript of this episode, please email transcripts@crooked.com and include the name of the podcast.

499: Trump Forfeits AI Race to China

Tommy and Ben discuss a blockbuster Washington Post report alleging that Secretary of War Pete Hegseth personally ordered a “double tap” airstrike that was a textbook example of a war crime, the latest on Trump’s slow-moving regime change policy in Venezuela, Trump’s shocking pardon of Juan Orlando Hernández, the former President of Honduras who was convicted of conspiring to import 400+ tons of cocaine into the United States, and the latest on the Trump administration’s peace talks with Russia. Then they explain how the tragic shooting of two National Guard troops in Washington, DC has led to a massive crackdown on legal immigration, and why the shooter is part of the long and disastrous history of the “Global War on Terror”, how the former president of South Africa’s daughter tricked men into fighting for Russia on the front lines against Ukraine, and the latest PR disaster for FBI Director Kash Patel. Then, Ben speaks to film director Julia Loktev and Russian journalist Ksenia Mironova about the documentary, “My Undesirable Friends”, which documents the experiences of independent journalists in Moscow as Putin cracked down on the press in the months before the invasion of Ukraine.

For a closed-captioned version of this episode, click here. For a transcript of this episode, please email transcripts@crooked.com and include the name of the podcast.

498: Is Pete Hegseth a War Criminal?

Tommy and Ben unpack Trump’s rapidly changing “peace deal” to end the war between Russia and Ukraine. They explain how the plan has changed since the first draft leaked last week, the confusion over where the plan came from and why many people believe the Russians authored it, what it tells us about which Trump officials are actually driving the policy, and why Russia seems poised to reject Trump’s plan even though it’s wildly tilted in their favor. They also discuss the consequences of the US skipping out on two major global summits at the G20 and COP, explain why former Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro says a paranoid hallucination led to his arrest, provide an update on whether the US is going to attack Venezuela, unpack Israel’s recent airstrikes in Lebanon and Gaza despite ceasefire agreements, unpack the stakes of a spicy war of words between China and Japan and Chinese President Xi Jinping’s call to President Trump over Taiwan, attempt to explain Candace Owens’ latest insane conspiracy theory involving France, and how a new tool on X proves many MAGA influencer accounts aren’t so America First after all.

For a closed-captioned version of this episode, click here. For a transcript of this episode, please email transcripts@crooked.com and include the name of the podcast.

497: Unpacking Trump’s Ukraine “Peace Deal”

Tommy and Ben discuss the anti-covid lockdown protests sweeping across China, soccer and politics at the World Cup, including the US win over Iran, Biden’s steady effort to thaw relations with Venezuela, updates from Ukraine, Belarus and Malaysia, news about the royal family and a victory for a boring French man. Then Ben is joined by Emma Belcher, President of the Ploughshares Fund to discuss how credible Russia’s nuclear threat really is.

 

For a closed-captioned version of this episode, click here. For a transcript of this episode, please email transcripts@crooked.com and include the name of the podcast.

316: Covid protests rock China

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